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In 2012 architect Hannes Coudenys began documenting quirky and ugly buildings in his native Belgium. These pics he posted on an Instagram account and a Facebook site called 'Ugly Belgian Houses” He is still doing so.
Some of those pics and reader comments have been posted in Bytes previously.
Asked in an interview why he thought Belgium in particular seemed to produce such eccentric architecture, he replied:
“The Dutch have been ruling us, France has been ruling us, we have always had to be brave little Belgians. We were finally being set free and subsidized to do what we want. After school, you find a girl, you get married, and you build your own house, and it’s not OK for it to look like the neighbours’ houses.”
I suppose that’s as good an explanation as any.
Here are some more recent pics from Hannes Courdenys’ Facebook page, with his headings and reader comments, at:
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When your contractor watches a how to video halfway through
I simply love it.
Definitely in the top 5 of the weirdests. It must be a nightmare to live across the street 😱
Just ONE question: WHY ?? 😱
Well there was this pile of old stones he had to use ..
Or evolved out of the stone age?
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Anything is possible. Coffee will work. Water is fine. But not the balcony
A balcony with ambition
It's a generous gesture
I think it's an office
Jesus!
In Belgium, there is Art Nouveau, and failed art 🙃😅
Should have left that left balcony out. What a taste of wood.
That's what we call an act of resistance against the invader!
Your balcony is stupid
It was cheaper than a half one
This looks more like peeking at the neighbors.
Woman, stay on your side of the bed
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When your house is low on storage space you can always delete Windows.
I think i have an acute case of window blindness
If that's a side wall of a row of houses, it's not so strange. But if it's a detached home, it's really weird.
This is wall-derful
Tax on houses in Belgium was paid on the amount of windows at the road side. So hence ...
If it is a renovated old farmhouse, the orientation of the wall be towards the yard in front of the house, not the street.
With climate change we better start thinking of adding fewer windows and perhaps even thicker walls, just saying...
I'm moving to Belgium next week for three months. I am now terrified.
Thijs van Eijk
This is the weakest post i've seen so far from this page 🙁 it's just the side of a regular house.
Thijs van Eijk I don't consider normal that people don't bother to offer a window toward the entrance of the property. It's selfish and in a way disrespectful toward the community.
Thijs van Eijk if you think this is normal, you're probably Belgian 😛
Another brick in the wall....instead of windows...
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When you send the architect back to the drawing board, but he sends the drawing board back
Waiting for the PowerPoint presentation...
Drive-in cinema 🤩
That's a Big screen TV 👌😜
Gave the Belgian architect a blank canvas, told them to do what they like... So they went on vacation!
They should park the cars facing the other way, as it looks like a drive-in theatre!
That house is mooning us.
O Nice, needs a mural!😁
Projection screen, yes, finally watch World Cup on a big screen
If I lived across the road I would project something onto that.
They're asking for graffiti.
Talk to the wall cause the house is not listening...
Banksy could make him millions.
Belgian architect?
Everyone in Belgium is an architect 😆
Has the silver car a puncture 😐
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The Ugly Belgian Houses virus is spreading
I think what happened here is they painted the joints white and this is all the spots they could reach standing on a ladder or from the window. The darker areas they just couldn’t reach 😄
This hurts my eyes to look at.
Vitiligo? 🧐
I like it!
Is that Tipp-Ex?
Psoriasis is not funny, not even for a house!
The house peed itself!
If this is deliberate omfg! If it's not 🙄
They obviously ran out of that brick type,
Then just used anything
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Total eclipse of the house
I feel sad for that little house.
And I need your wall tonight, and I need it more than ever !
Sign of the times 😩
How is it possible ?
One can always ask what came first !
Every now and then I get a little bit lonely
And you're never coming round
Looks like it's trying to hide. Poor little house.
We shall not be moved! ✊️
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I think they blocked me
We can't be sure : it could be that the other walls are a paradise of windows and doorwindows and they are people who don't like to be seen from the street.
Client to architect:"you know tetris right? Because i want a tetris house."
Architect: " yeah....i know tetris.."
Is there any chance the roofs are made of glass so some light get's in?
I love it, usually the other side it's full of windows (instead walls)
Who needs a view when you have a room like this?
Smart optimization for the EPC. Windows are a liability. So why waste them on a side where you will cover them up anyway with drapes/curtains to get privacy.
Windows are sooo 2022.
This house is completely bunkers!
Think inside of the box.
Well I kinda like it.
This is a great canvas to paint something nice on.
I need a house without windows!
What's the purpose of that fence/gate? 🤔
"WINDOWS could not be installed on your Belgian House. It needs more disk space"
Nothing wrong with this design and definately not ugly. It seems a conceptual choice not to connect the interior not to the street. There can be several reasons to that, heavy traffic, bad neighbours of even real Ugly Belgian Houses across the street. Maybe you have to be an architect (who doesn't necessarily knows of plays Tetris) to understand this design.
Wonderful preserved WW2 bunker
Is it a mausoleum?
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You had one job
The owners opted for a living together, living apart relationship.
No but this is common in Belgium. The left house will be completed with another one soon (or later)
When the A3 printer is broken and the intern has to tape together two A4 sheets.
Luckily the architect added the right amount of quirkiness because I don't like the style of the houses at all. Perhaps he didn't like it either. It's even funny I think but then I'm Belgian 🙂
On the left will be modern style, just like the one on the right. Adjacent houses in the same style are illegal in this country, after all.
Better not ask them to build a ship...
The plot between the two belongs to someone else...
Semi detached Belgium style
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Yesterday you told me 'bout the blue blue sky. But all that I can see is just a yellow lemon-tree
No parking ..dont spoil my view 🤪
When you're building your Sim's house and be like 'I'll do the windows later' but you run out of money.
Blocks with a blocked out view. Nice bush
Maybe, they had no money for curtains 🤔🤯
Clearly someone who wants to sit in the design row for a double. Everything in this picture is rambling and wants to go somewhere else. The grass is 100% definitely greener somewhere else.
The bush in front of the only front window
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putting the 'mess' in Ramesses
Well I like it. Belgian houses are amazing ❤️
Are there no building design codes in Belgium, or is there a low key "who can build the weirdest" national competition?🤪🤪
Begium is different state of mind - afer 20 years still dont get it
I prefere a belgian house than an american cardboard box that flies away with some hurricain wind. Out house won’t fly away
The pyramid looks good. The cubes on the right don't.
I wonder which is ugliest... The tower on the left may compete as well as the blocks on the right.
That's probably what makes the pyramid look so offended 😀
How is this even real lmao
I guess someone is buried underneath.
Look at the “face” on the house on the right. Correct reaction
Is there no beginning to their talent!
“Walls like an Egyptian”
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Error: no video signal
🙄 the boss said "mix the batches of bricks" so at some point i gradually added new bricks on each line to smooth out the change
No video signal? But I can see Windows®
That is one of the scariest ive ever seen.
I like that somehow
I’m being held a prisoner…..please send help!
When Armageddon comes they have the perfect above ground shelter...hmmm.
A bunker with windows? 😳
This looks like a very normal side wall to me, but the 'garden' is horrible.
This is stunningly ugly. One of the all time greats. Bravo Belgium. How the fuck is it the same country that Brugge is in?
Awful
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Holy shit !
It's a miracle!🤭
Reminded me that my oven needs cleaning...
I would love to know story behind it , & if the neighbors had a fit. The surround is God awful, looks like something like a gray cat exploded, then it hardened this way around the poor statue! She does not look happy to be frozen in there. She deserves to be surrounded by flowers & hedges😔😪
Maybe it just came overnight... A mysterious miracle ! 😇 Oh Lord !
I didn’t know He had a car.
Blessed be thy garage 😇
So (s)he can pray before (s)he parks the car 😂
No no, holy Mary 🤪
My mother used to work there. The house of doctors. It doesn't look at its best on this picture, i agree 😄
This is just plain crazy - I love it 😂🤩 I want to know the story behind this 👏👏😃
Our Lady Of The Carport
Oh come on, this is simply amazing! ❤ I always try to take a look when I'm in the area.
to the bat cave
I’m a top fan of how ugly this is
Actually, I like everything in this photo
I love it!It's the garage doors, need beautiful handmade, wooden doors , it would look stunning
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